Review of Brotherhood of the Wolf (2001) by Henri N — 17 Aug 2009
Revisiting Brotherhood after 7 years.
An explosion of genres, takes a dozen movies and takes the best for it's own. This is not just a creature feature, although the horror-monster-sex-fantasy-special effects shroud it's lurks behind can be misleading. The one thing you don't want to do is take this movie seriously, what you want to do is let this story take you beyond what's expected. A beast, supposedly based on a true story.
We start with an attack, right off the top, even before the narrator speaks, for the first hour or so we do not see it, but we hear fearsome growls, moans and roars, and see an unkempt, frightened peasant girl dragged to her doom. The beast, when it finally appears, is a most satisfactory one indeed, created by Jim Henson's Creature Shop. A name that always insures pleasing results.
"The Brotherhood of the Wolf" looks just great, the photography is gloriously atmospheric and creepy; a lot of fog, dank marshes, sinister looking vines, lots of rain and a very nice color palette. The action, fight choreography and beautiful locations are all worked in very well amongst: occult ceremonies, swashbuckling, incestuous longings, political subversion, animal spirits, slasher scenes and bordellos.
"Brotherhood" runs long, but there is so much to appreciate.
This review of Brotherhood of the Wolf (2001) was written by Henri N on 17 Aug 2009.
Brotherhood of the Wolf has generally received positive reviews.
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